


Adelaide and Frederick

by Em_is_here



Series: Eugene Appreciation Week [5]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)
Genre: Birth, Eugene doesn't like waiting, F/M, New dream become parents, The men are kept out of the way of the birth, Twins, pacing, this frustrates Eugene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-02-22 22:28:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23934703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Em_is_here/pseuds/Em_is_here
Summary: Eugene waits anxiously for footsteps come to tell him he can go to his wife and meet his child(ren).Lance and his Father-in-Law give him advice
Relationships: Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel, Queen Arianna of Corona/King Frederic of Corona (Disney)
Series: Eugene Appreciation Week [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1719349
Comments: 4
Kudos: 44





	Adelaide and Frederick

It had been hours. 

Eugene was pacing in front of the door. He couldn't even hear Rapunzel, he was being kept in a room on the other side of the castle. 

They had promised to come and get him as soon as it was all over, but he couldn’t see her, couldn’t help in any way. 

So he paced. 

The king, Lance, even Varian had been corralled into this room and kept there. There was a very stern Lady Crowley stood on the other side of the door, making sure that none of them would try to reach her, on the orders of Arianna.

The King was stood by the window, staring out without seeing anything. Lance was sat on a chair, leaning his forearms against his thighs. Varian was sitting in front of the fire, watching Eugene, still pacing a hole into the floor. 

“That isn’t going to make the time go any faster, Eugene.” The King finally said. 

“Well at least this way I feel like I’m doing something. I can’t stand not being able to do anything!” Eugene snapped. Still pacing.

The King sighed and walked over to Eugene. “Sit. I’m going to tell you the story of Rapunzel’s birth.”

Eugene was driven with a firm hand to sit next to Lance on the sofa. The King took the armchair. Both seats were facing the fire, so Varian turned from watching the flames to watching the older men.

“You already know that Arianna became sick while pregnant with Rapunzel. She was dying.” The other men nodded. They knew why Rapunzel had been born with the power to heal.

“I was so relieved when she got better. But I spent so long pacing in the weeks they were looking for the flower it became second nature to me. So when it came time for Rapunzel’s birth, I continued in much the same way you were, Eugene.” The King looked over to the man in question, who’s leg had begun to bounce.

“I was kept away for hours. Locked in one room much as we have been now. I had a friend in there with me, a trusted servant. The man had seven children so was used to the feeling of not being able to do anything. I was not. Not at all. I did not handle it well. I was demanding that Old Lady Crowley let me out, for she was the one standing guard just as she is now. But she didn’t. And she won’t now. The woman has become even more stubborn in the 26 years since that night.

“It was a difficult birth, even with the flower and they told me after the fact that they weren’t certain in the middle of it if Arianna was going to last the night, she lost so much blood.”

Eugene’s breaths were shallower, quicker.

“My point is, that Rapunzel is one of, if not the strongest women I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Stronger even than her mother and far more stubborn. She doesn’t give up and she and your child will be fine when they do finally call for you.”

Lance piped up from beside Eugene. “Brother, if there is one thing I know, it is that you are going to love being a father. You have been the best uncle to my girls-”

“And an excellent big brother.” Came from the teenager on the floor.

“And an excellent big brother to mad scientist over there. But part of fatherhood is realising that you can’t control everything. You can do what is best, but your kid is going to make their own decisions and you will have to encourage that. This, what you’re feeling right now? This is the first step to learning that you cannot protect your kid all the time. Your heart is in another part of the castle, and you don’t know what is happening to it and that is a feeling you are going to have to get used to. It is simultaneously the best and worst feeling in the world - having your heart walking around outside your chest as you well know. But you’re never going to regret it.”

The men fell into an easier silence than the one they had had before, but they were still nervous. Still listening for footsteps outside of the door. 

Ten hours they had been kept in that room. Ten hours of nervousness and pacing and telling stories to distract themselves. Varian had started teaching them the basics of alchemy at about hour five. Lance had just finished an excerpt from the tales of Flynnigan Rider when they heard those footsteps. Eugene leapt out of his seat to face the door. 

A small woman opened the door, hair tied back. “The princess has given birth to healthy twins. You may go to her.”

Eugene sprinted across the castle, taking the steps up to their tower room two at a time, sliding to a stop in front of the doors and taking a deep breath before pushing them open.

Rapunzel was lying in their bed, looking exhausted.

“Hey Sunshine. You feeling ok?” 

She smiled up at him, weakly and held her hand out. 

“Hi Eugene. I’m sore and tired. But otherwise, yes.” 

He sat down on the edge of the bed and kissed her hand.

“I hear you have grown two full people, instead of the one we assumed.”

“Yeah. When they told me that I wasn’t done after the first one came out, I almost bit Faith’s head off.”

The woman in question said “Don’t worry about that, your highness. I was honestly expecting much worse. And here is your eldest.” Faith handed Rapunzel a tiny bundle of blankets. They only got a few seconds to coo over her when another midwife came over with another bundle of blankets, “And your second born.” This time the baby was handed to Eugene. The attendants and the Queen made themselves scarce fairly quickly. Their work was done and everything was cleaned up. Now it was up to the parents to care for them.

“They’re so small!” Eugene whispered, not wanting to wake them.

“They are. They didn’t feel that way coming out of me. Do you have any ideas for names?”

“One boy, one girl, right?”

“Right.”

“How about calling this young man,” looking down at the child in his arms, “Frederick?”

“After Dad?”

“Yes. Your father has been rather instrumental in our lives, hasn’t he. And we did decide that our second born would inherit the Dark Kingdom. I feel like that kingdom deserves a king who shares your father’s name.”

“Adelaide.”

Eugene looked back up at Rapunzel with a confused face.

“Let’s name her Adelaide. You said that my father was instrumental in shaping our lives, your mother did a similar thing. And anyway. It’s a pretty name.”

Eugene smiled at her and reached for her hand. “Adelaide and Frederick it is. One the heir to Corona, the other the heir to the Dark Kingdom.It has a kind of symmetry i like.”

Rapunzel smiled and yawned. “Time for bed, i think.” Eugene slipped Fred into the cot at the end of their bed and returned for Adelaide. They would have to get another cot made, but for now they could share. 

“Goodnight Sweethearts. Tomorrow you can meet the rest of your family.”

By the time he returned to the bed, Rapunzel was already fast asleep. He kicked off his boots and changed quickly before slipping under the covers next to his wife. Kissing her temple, he drifted off to sleep, full of tomorrow.

**Author's Note:**

> Throwback to when the fathers were kept well away from births. Eugene would not handle this well, bless him.
> 
> This is my entry for Eugene Appreciation Week, day 5 - Free day.
> 
> You can write whatever you want so i decided to write this. You're welcome.
> 
> And yes. I did decide in the course of this that Fitzmama is called Adelaide. Sue me.
> 
> As always, the rest of Eugene Appreciation Week can be found at @fishskiin on Tumblr


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